The Forbidden One
by Irlynn
Summary: She was human weapon. The Fuhrer erased all memories of the battles from her mind for her own safety. Her memory starts at the age of 9. What happens when she starts remembering? And what does Ed, Al and Winry have to do with her past?
1. Background

**The Forbidden One**  
Well here's another story of another category in anime. A FMA fanfic brought to you by Ayumi Y. A thanks to a great friend who pointed out to me that I misspelt "practically".

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself and took care of her as if she were his own.

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Alchemist except my OCs… from any other stories as well… And this disclaimer goes for the rest of this fanfic.  
Ayumi: So I have just started another story that will take me forever to type out, along with some other stories. Aiya…so why did I want to do this again?  
Rina: Iono.  
Ayumi: That was a rhetorical question.  
Rina: A rhetori-what?  
Ayumi: Never mind.

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 1: Background

For many years, her powers were kept secret to the military's prying eyes before the need to use it had come. She was used as the last resort to help end the war in Ishbal. The others who were classified as military secrets had been sent out to fight alongside the other alchemists, but they were easily killed. Despite the great powers the Forbidden control, they were killed like ants getting stepped on. There was only one left, and she was merely a three year old girl, about to be sent into a war to fight.  
She was the hope for those fighting in the military, she was the ultimate weapon that would soon wipe out the Ishbal nation. She would be the last resort, when she was finally sent in to fight, those who pitied her thought of the cruel and twisted fate that was waiting for her out in the battlefield. A child sent in to fight for the soldiers, for the alchemists, for the 'dogs of the military', only a cruel fate would await her as she took little baby steps out to stand alongside the front line soldiers.  
All eyes turned in her direction, guns stopped going off, alchemists stopped their alchemy and the Ishbalans lowered their weapons, they were all looking towards the sight of a little girl standing in between the two opposing forces. She looked up at the opposing forces with her innocent and clear azure blue eyes, and cute little baby face, giving off no sign that she knew what was really going on around her. She smiled and laughed a little baby laugh, the soldiers and rebels smiled and grinned at the sight of something so small and innocent in the midst of something big, chaotic and evil. It was the first time in a while that the soldiers and rebels had seen something so pure and happy amidst their fighting. Something so innocent, something to treasure, to protect, it was the image of happiness.  
The little girl smiled again, this time, clapping her hands. Just as the Ishbalans started to calm down and lowered their weapons, as well as the military soldiers, the sound of a huge explosion startled them all. But by then, it was already too late, for they had all been hit by the explosion, and died in the process. Already more than one third of Ishbal nation was annihilated in a mere few moments. The girl just stood there crying at the fiery sight before her, she was scared; scared of what just happened. In the midst of her crying, a person had came and picked her up away from the burning city of Ishbal, and took her back to Central.  
On the way back to Central, the little girl cried through most of the trip as her father tried comforting her in every way possible. Finally, she got tired from all the crying and fell asleep on her father's shoulder while sucking on her thumb. Everything was once again, peaceful, at least for a little bit longer.

Nine Years Later in Central.  
A twelve year old girl ran down the streets of Central City carrying a loaf of bread wrapped up in a paper bag. She was heading home to make dinner for herself, her father, mother and newly adopted younger brother. As she ran down the street, she noticed that Lieutenant Colonel Mustang was leading a boy and an armored person towards Mr. Tucker's mansion. Since she was the curious little girl she was, she followed them into Shou Tucker's front yard. As she took a step just inside the gates, she was met by Alexander (the dog) who had happily jumped on top of the unsuspecting guy with the red coat. She just stood there, staring, then she started to giggle a bit, so much as to not draw attention to herself.  
"Brother…" said the armored guy to the other boy on the ground, "Are you all right?"  
"Bad dog, Alexander," said a child's voice as the front doors opened.  
"Oh, I'm very sorry," said Mr. Tucker from the door.  
"Are you…Mr. Tucker?" asked the guy on the ground.  
"Yes, I am," said Mr. Tucker, then he looked towards the front gates and noticed the twelve year old girl standing there staring and called out, "Why hello Rina, would you like to come in? Nina has been lonely all day without you. It's been a while since you last visited."  
"Only for a little bit Mr. Tucker," answered Rina as she walked to the door, "I have to get home before dark. My father is coming home for dinner today."  
"Of course," said Mr. Tucker, then he turned to the guy in red, "Why don't you come on in? Hurry up."  
"Huh? Sure," said the guy in red.

"Ah…I'm very sorry about the mess in here," explained Mr. Tucker, "but there isn't a woman in the house to help clean up so it just ends up like this."  
The little girl, Nina went up to the guy in armor and pulled on his hand, "Hey, big brother, your clothes are weird. Isn't it heavy?"  
"It's all right, big brother is very strong," answered the armored guy.  
He looked up and saw Mr. Tucker staring in disbelief at him. He started to sweat.  
"These are the Elric brothers," said Mustang, "I'll tell you about them one day. So please don't ask too much for now."  
"Nina, please go and play outside for a while," Mr. Tucker said to his daughter, "Alexander is lonely all by himself."  
"Aww…then I'll come back later," Nina said to the armored guy.  
"Mr. Tucker?" said Rina as she reentered the living room carrying a tray, "I made some tea for you, and the guests."  
Rina came into the room with the tray of cups and a teapot, and placed them on the table top. She poured the tea for Mr. Tucker, Mustang, Al and Ed.  
"Thank you Rina," thanked Mr. Tucker, then he turned to the Elric brothers, "It's a wonder that children as old as you are even thinking of taking the National Alchemist exam. If there's anything that I can do to help, just ask."  
"Then, can you show us the talking chimera that you created?" asked the guy in red.  
"Me too," chirped in the armor guy.  
Mr. Tucker's face changed expressions, "I'm sorry, but that thing died not long after I created it. But back to the point, getting you two to pass the exam is more important. You just have to work and study hard, and it'll be a breeze."  
"Mr. Tucker?" said Rina, she cut in at the mention of alchemy and the test.  
"Yes, what is it Rina?" asked Mr. Tucker.  
"Can you teach me some alchemy? I want to surprise my father with it," asked Rina, her eyes bright.  
"Of course," said Mr. Tucker, "Follow me, I'll show you to the library where you can get some books on how to start learning alchemy."  
Mr. Tucker led Rina and the Elric brothers to where his library was, and opened the oak doors to a fairly dusty room, "And here's the library, you can use it all you want."  
"Wow," gasped Rina. "Where should I start? There're so many books here."  
"This is amazing," said the armor guy, "I've never seen so many books in one place."  
"The first sector library has way more books that what I have in here, and when you become a national alchemist, you can have access to those books," explained Mr. Tucker.  
"Really?" asked Rina, she made a face.  
"Yes," replied Mr. Tucker.  
"Then how come I'm allowed to have access to those books?" asked Rina, she was thinking really hard.  
"Wow, really?" asked the armor guy, "You can look at all those classified books?"  
"Yeah," answered Rina.  
"So are you a national alchemist like Mr. Tucker?" asked the armor guy.  
"No," said Rina, she laughed, "I don't even know the first thing to alchemy."  
"But how…"  
"It's true," said Mr. Tucker, cutting in, "Rina doesn't know anything about alchemy."  
Rina ran off in search of some alchemy books as Mr. Tucker talked to the armor guy, explaining things to him.  
"Then how does she get the classified books that only state alchemists can get?"  
"Rina is…a special case," explained Mr. Tucker.  
"What do you mean?" asked the armor guy.  
"In Rina's case, she can have access to anything in the military, whether it's of the least or most importance to the military," continued Mr. Tucker.  
"How is she special?" asked the armor guy.  
"Rina is the Fuhrer's precious only child," said Mr. Tucker. "That is, until a few weeks ago when he adopted a young boy to be Rina's brother. But to the Fuhrer, Rina will always be his most precious child."  
"The Fuhrer? Why?" repeated the armor guy.  
"Yes, the Fuhrer, the head of the military, the president," explained Mr. Tucker. "Rina was found by the Fuhrer before he became Fuhrer after a war he fought in. She was taken in by him after he saw how pitiful she looked, lying there among the dead bodies, crying miserably."  
"So she is special, and sad at the same time," said the armor guy.  
"Yes," agreed Mr. Tucker, the he called to Rina, "Rina, do you want to stay for dinner?"  
"Oh, I can't," said Rina, "I have to go home now, thank you for letting me visit. Good-bye!"

As Rina walked into her home, she immediately went to the kitchen and started to make stew for dinner. She cut up the loaf of bread into slices and placed them on a plate and placed it on the dining table. After the stew was done, she waited with her brother for her father to return home from work. Their mother was getting ready at the moment their father walked through the doors.  
"I'm home!" called her father as he walked through the doors.  
"Welcome home father!" both Rina and her brother called back to him. "Dinner's ready on the table, father," informed Rina.  
"Did you make it today Rina?" asked the Fuhrer as he sniffed the aroma wafting around in the air.  
"Yes father," said Rina, "How can you tell?"  
"I helped too!" said the young boy, holding onto his sister's hand.  
"So what did you do today father?" asked Rina.  
"Nothing much," replied the Fuhrer.  
"Oh, I met two of the people who are going to take this year's National Alchemist exam," said Rina.  
"That's very nice Rina," commented the mother.  
"Yes it is. It's good to make new friends. What are their names?" asked her father.  
"Um…I don't know," said Rina, "Do you have a picture of all of this year's applicants?"  
"Sure I do honey," said the Fuhrer as he took out a pile of papers from out of nowhere and handed it to her.  
"I wanna see too! I wanna see too!" said the young boy as he leaned over and looked at the papers his sister was holding.  
Rina flipped through the papers and stopped at the picture of the guy with the red coat and pointed it to her father, "Here's one of them, his name is…Edward Elric."  
Rina flipped the page and pointed again, "Here's the other one, Alphonse Elric."  
"Ah yes, aspiring young alchemists," said the Fuhrer as he looked at the two sheets of paper.  
"They seem to get younger and younger with each test," said the mother as looked at the picture of Ed.  
"He looks as old at Rina!" commented the young boy from Rina's side.  
"Father?" said Rina, looking down.  
"Yes, what is it?"  
"Can I take the National Alchemist exam as well?" asked Rina, she looked up, determination in her eyes.  
"No you may not," answered the Fuhrer as his expression changed.  
"Why not?" asked Rina, "I'm not scared of fighting when war starts."  
"I'm sorry Rina," said the Fuhrer, "but I do not want you to see the death and destruction of war again."  
"Your father is very worried about you Rina," said the mother, "You should respect his wishes."  
"What do you mean father?" asked Rina, ignoring her mother, "I've never fought or been involved in a war."  
"I'm sorry Rina. Maurice, please take Billy and yourself to another room, it's time I told her," said the Fuhrer as started to explain, after waiting for the two other members in the family to leave the room, "Rina, twelve years ago, you were sent into a battle against the Ishbal nation. The military used you to wreak death and destruction on the Ishbal nation. You do not remember it. Also, you already are a Forbidden, that makes you more powerful than even a First Class National Alchemist."  
"So can I get a silver clock as well?" asked Rina, totally changing the subject.  
"I suppose you can."  
"But I don't know any alchemy though," said Rina.  
"Of course not," said the Fuhrer, "Not when your memory is being blocked."  
"Memory block?"  
"I'll just undo the memory block then," said the Fuhrer as he immediately undid a spell.  
Memories of her childhood past flooded back into her head. Rina could see that in her childhood she had learned alchemy at a surprisingly inhuman speed. And three other children who played with her, but their faces were blurred.

Dun dun dun…who are these friends of hers?


	2. Friends or Foes?

The Forbidden One  
I am so bad at keeping characters in character…So read and try to enjoy.

Thanks for reading I really don't remember what happens in these earlier chapters as I am usually 9 chapters ahead in writing these.

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself and took care of her as if she were his own.

Ayumi: I can't keep them in character!  
Rina: Too bad.  
Ayumi: Shaddup, or I'll make you go wackier.  
Rina: …  
Ayumi: Good girl.

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 2: Friends? Or foes?

_Memories of her childhood past flooded back into her head. Rina could see that in her childhood she had learned alchemy at a surprisingly inhuman speed. And three other children who played with her, but their faces were blurred._

'Who are they?' Rina thought as she fell asleep that night.

The next day Rina, visited Mr. Tucker's place again to find that Edward was hard at studying and Alphonse was playing with Nina and Alexander.  
"Hey! Good morning!" she called.  
"Good morning Miss Rina!" Nina called back, "Will you play with us today?"  
"I'm sorry Nina," said Rina, "I have to talk to your father. I'll come play with you after I talk to your father."  
"Okay," answered Nina.  
"Hey, Nina," started Rina.  
"Yeah?"  
"Where are those two big brothers from yesterday?" asked Rina.  
"Oh, Edward niichan is in the library reading books," said Nina, "And Alphonse niichan is helping daddy."  
"Okay, thank you Nina," said Rina.  
Inside the house.  
"Mr. Tucker!" called Rina.  
"In the kitchen Rina," said Mr. Tucker.  
"Good morning Mr. Tucker," said Rina as she entered the kitchen, "And good morning to you too, Mr. Elric."  
"Good morning Rina," greeted Mr. Tucker.  
"Good morning," Alphonse said as well, "but how did you know my name?"  
"It's a secret," said Rina with a knowing smile.  
"Hahaha," laughed Mr. Tucker, "Rina's father is very well informed about things."  
"Really?" said Alphonse with interest, "What does your father do?" (He's got a bad memory.)  
"If I tell you then it won't be a secret anymore," said Rina.  
"Aww…why not?" asked Alphonse.  
"I have my own reasons for not telling others about my background," said Rina, suddenly getting serious.  
"Well, anyway, did you bring the food?" asked Mr. Tucker.  
"Of course!" said Rina, suddenly brightening up, "They're all here in this bag."  
"Thank you so much for helping me do these kinds of things all the time Rina," said Mr. Tucker, "Can you go and play with Nina and Alexander, Alphonse?"  
"Of course," said Alphonse as he left the kitchen and out to the front yard.  
"So, did you come to see the two brothers as well?" asked Mr. Tucker.  
"Well, it would be nice to meet new people and make some friends," said Rina.  
"I see," said Mr. Tucker, "I guess you should go and talk to them then."  
"Thanks Mr. Tucker," thanked Rina as she rushed out to the front yard as well.  
Out in the front yard.  
"Hey Nina! Can I play too?" asked Rina, as she bounded out the door.  
"Of course you can!" said Nina, "Big sister can always play with us."  
An hour passed…  
"Hey! Al! Where are you?" asked Edward as he stepped out the door. He put his arm in front of his face to protect his eyes from the sun's glare.  
"Look, little big brother! It snowed! It snowed!" cried Nina.  
Edward gasped, then smiled as he jumped down the steps and into the snow.  
They played for a while and laid in the snow, laughing from joy and looking up at the sky.  
"I sure wish you could stay with us after you take the test," wished Nina.  
"Edward and Alphonse have things to do too Nina," said Rina.  
"But we'll come and play with you often," said Alphonse.  
Edward got up and started to draw something in the snow.  
"What are you drawing big brother?" asked Nina.  
Nina, Rina and Alphonse circled around Edward to see what he was doing.  
"It's called an Transmutation Circle. It can make your wishes come true," said Edward as he kept drawing, "Done. Now…just watch."  
The circle started to glow an azure colour and plants started to sprout from the circle in the snow.  
Nina giggled in delight, "It's go great! You're so great at this!"  
Suddenly, a voice came from behind, "Well, hello there."  
"Ah!" Edward turned around, "Major Hughes!"  
"Yo!" greeted Major Hughes, "I came to get you. It's Ed's birthday today isn't it?"  
"Eh? Ed's birthday today?" asked Rina.  
"Oh yeah, it is," said Alphonse as he thought about it.  
"How did you know?" asked Edward.  
"Eh heh heh," laughed Major Hughes, "I happen to be an intelligence officer."  
"Oh yeah…" said Rina, "I forgot.  
"You know Major Hughes?" asked Ed, "How?"  
"He's a friend of my father's…?" answered Rina.  
"Hahahaha," laughed Major Hughes, "That's a bit exaggerating it a little."  
"Eh heh heh," laughed Rina.  
"Well, let's head over to my house. My wife's waiting for us there," said Major Hughes, "And Rina and this little lady can come too. The more the merrier!"  
Later, at Major Hughes house.  
"Welcome, I'm so glad you could come," said Glacia.  
"This is my wife Glacia," introduced Major Hughes.  
"You're HUGE!" cried Ed.  
"Are you having a baby?" asked Al.  
"You want to feel the baby?" asked Glacia.  
Ed and Al both backed away, while Nina gladly went up to pat the baby. Rina stood on the side giggling at Ed and Al's antics.  
After singing happy birthday, eating cake, and just having fun after a few hours, they all just sat around drinking tea and eating cookies.  
"Now, who wants some more tea?" asked Glacia.  
"Thank you," said Major Hughes.  
Glacia groaned and collapsed to the floor, as Major Hughes rushed to her side.  
"What's wrong?" asked Major Hughes.  
"Dear…it's.." (In the Japanese thing there's this funny thing happening where Glacia says "Uma…"((but doesn't finish saying the sentence)) and Hughes thinks "what do you mean 'horse'?" In Japanese 'uma' means horse, but what Glacia meant to say is "umaremasu" which means to be born. So in this case, Glacia is trying to say "the baby is about to be born", but only finishes half the sentence, therefore Hughes misunderstood what she was trying to say and misinterpreted it to be "horse".)  
"It's…?"  
"It's coming…" finished Glacia.  
"But the due date is still…" stuttered Hughes.  
"But it's coming out now," said Glacia.  
Ed, Al, Nina and Rina watched from the side, not knowing what to do.  
"Doctor…we have to get a doctor!" cried Hughes.  
"Ahhh! It's a blizzard outside!" informed Al as he pointed out the window.  
"I'll go get a doctor! Just wait here!" said Hughes as he left into the blizzard.  
"W-wait a sec!" called Ed. "What do we---"  
"So sorry about this everyone," apologized Glacia.  
A bit later.  
"Glacia-san, I got the warm water," said Ed as he walked in the room with a tub full of warm water.  
"And I have the towels!" called Rina as she ran in the room after Ed.  
"Thank you, that's great," said Glacia. A few moments after she said that, she groaned in pain and fainted.  
Ed, Al, Nina and Rina all panicked when she fainted.  
"Wahh! She died!" cried Nina.  
Ed tried his best to calm the little girl down, and convince her that Glacia only fainted, while Al was creating a theory on some sort of impossible transmutation. Ed turned around and yelled at Al, "Giving birth isn't alchemy!"  
"That's true! That's true!" cried Rina, panicking as well, "What should we do?"  
"Damn it!" said Ed as he punched his hands together.  
"Big brother!" called Nina as she was crouched over the tub of water.  
"What is it?" asked Ed as he turned to Nina.  
"The water's cold," said Nina.  
"Ah, okay," said Ed, walking over to the tub of water, and putting his hands on the edge of the tub. An azure blue light sparked and the water turned hot once again, steam rising from the tub.  
"Ah… big brother! What was that just now?" asked Al.  
"Alchemy?" guessed Rina as she went over to see as well.  
"But, there wasn't a transmutation circle," said Al, as he pointed it out. "So how was big brother able to do such a thing?"  
"It was all just the spirit!" cried Ed. "Yeah! It was the spirit!"  
"But how is that possible?" asked Rina and Al.  
"Well, it's just a guess," said Ed, forcing a laugh out.

Later on when the baby is born.  
"Wow, she's beautiful!" exclaimed Rina as she gazed the baby in Glacia's arms.  
"Yes, and it's all thanks to you four for helping me along the way," said Glacia, cuddling her newborn baby.  
The four children just stared at Glacia's motherly love towards her daughter in awe.

Later on.  
"Wow, Miss Glacia looked so happy," commented Rina as she walked along.  
"Yeah," agreed Al and Ed. Nina had already fallen asleep, and was put into bed. They had called her father that she would be staying over for the night and will return the next morning as soon as they wake up.  
"It's such a great thing too," said Ed.  
"Mothers sure are amazing," said Al, remembering his own mother.  
"Yeah," agreed Ed. Rina kept silent, her face looking down as she sat on the floor beside the couch Ed was lying on, but Al noticed from his spot at the wall.  
"What's wrong Rina-san?" asked Al, concerned about Rina's sudden change in attitude.  
Rina still stared at the floor, not hearing what Al said.  
"Rina?" repeated Al.  
"Huh? Oh, sorry, I kinda dozed off a bit," said Rina, apologetically.  
"It's all right," said Al.  
"So, what did you say?" asked Rina.  
"Oh, well, umm… Rina-san, I was wondering what your mother is like," asked Al, a bit shyly.  
"She…" Rina looked down at the floor again. "My mother is very nice and kind hearted…"  
"Really?" said Ed, getting up and putting his feet on the floor next to Rina. "The way you talk about her, it seems as if she really isn't like that."  
"Oh no, she is nice to me, and my brother too," said Rina, "It's just that I'm not that close to my mother."  
"Why not?" asked Al, "Shouldn't you try and get to know you mother? This way the family can be happier."  
"My father works so much at his office that the family rarely see him," said Rina, "My mother is more concerned about my brother and his education, after all, she wants the best for him."  
"What about you?" asked Ed, "Does she have any expectations for you?"  
"No," answered Rina, "The mother I have now is not my real mother. She's my step-mother. You see, my mother died giving birth to me."  
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Al. Ed's face also softened a bit as he looked on at the back of her head.  
"No worries though," said Rina as she looked up and smiled, "I never knew her so it doesn't matter much."  
"What about your father?" asked Ed, "Does he care?"  
"Oh, of course he does," said Rina, "He won't even let my mother take care of planning my future for me. He does it all by himself."  
"Wow," said Al, "I wish my father was like that. But he left many years ago for some research."  
"That bastard left his entire family and doesn't even call or write back to tell us how he's doing, leaving mom waiting for him. And what happens? Mom died," Ed said angrily.  
"I'm sure your father had a reason," said Rina, smiling at Ed, "Just as my father does.  
"Oh yeah, Rina-san what job does your father do?" asked Al, cutting in to break the silence.

And see ya all later in the next chapter.


	3. Can't Remember Title

The Forbidden One  
I'm trying very, very hard to keep this interesting in a way, and to keep all of them in character. So please forgive me if anything is weird.

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself; he took care of her as if she were his own.

Ayumi: I hate this…  
Rina: Too bad.  
Ayumi: Shaddup.  
Rina: …  
Ayumi: Good girl.

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 3: Many Reasons

_"That bastard left his entire family and doesn't even call or write back to tell us how he's doing, leaving mom waiting for him. And what happens? Mom died," Ed said angrily.  
"I'm sure your father had a reason," said Rina, smiling at Ed, "Just as my father does.  
"Oh yeah, Rina-san what job does your father do?" asked Al, cutting in to break the silence._

"Oh, my father works in the military," answered Rina. "He's a really great fighter."  
"Oh, is he a regular soldier?" asked Al.  
"Or is he an alchemist?" asked Ed, a bit interested about Rina's military working father.  
"Oh, he's not an alchemist at all, but he has some interest in it," said Rina, "He uses swords to fight, in fact, five in all. My father was a bit disappointed when I said that I wanted to be a State Alchemist and work in the military like him."  
"Well, I guess he's just protective of you that's all," said Al.  
"He said that I would have to kill more people than what I've already killed, and see more horrors of war," said Rina, she hung her head, "And he didn't want that to happen again."  
"What do you mean by again?" asked Ed, a bit suspicious.  
"My father said that I was involved in a war," said Rina, "That I was born on the battlefield."  
"But to kill people already?" asked Al, "What was it like? Was it scary?"  
"Truthfully, I don't remember at all," said Rina.  
"Then how were you able to kill all those people then?" asked Ed.  
Rina pulled off her shirt, making Ed go red in the face, Al too, if it was possible. She lifted her arm up to Ed to show him, "This is how."  
"What…? Is this a transmutation circle…?" Ed gasped.  
"No, it's merely part of the circle," explained Rina, "A very complex one. This is just the activator, or can be used as a catalyst."  
"But to be able to activate and use this properly, how was that possible?" asked Ed, examining the tattoo on Rina's arm.  
"Yes, that's true," agreed Al, he too examined the tattoo.  
"But where's the rest of the circle?" asked Ed, mumbling to himself.  
"It was removed," Rina answered Ed's rhetorical question.  
"Removed?" repeated Ed, his face shot up and looked at Rina's face questioningly.  
"My father said that I no longer needed it and had it removed," said Rina, "That was a long time ago too."  
"So the transmutation circle was only temporary," concluded Al.  
"Yes, it was only used once," said Rina, "For that horrible war."  
"But to send a child, a new born baby no less, into a war," said Ed, "That's just inhumane."  
"That's just how the world goes Ed," Rina sighed. "Well, I'll go on ahead home then. Good night."  
"Bye…" Al and Ed called to Rina, as they watched her retreating back.  
"Rina-san is very nice isn't she big brother?" asked Al. "She seems like mom."  
"Why's that?" asked Ed, turning to face his brother.  
"Well, she spaces out a lot when it comes to talk about her family, and she's really nice to people too," explained Al. "She cooks, cleans and helps Mr. Tucker take care of Nina and Alexander a lot too."  
"I guess that's true…" Ed agreed, gazing back at where Rina walked off.

The Next Day…  
"Congratulations, you are now a dog of the military," said Colonel Mustang as he threw a silver clock over to Ed.  
"Isn't there a better way to say that?" asked Ed as he caught the falling object.  
"But it's true though," said a voice from the door.  
Heads turned to see who was standing at the door, it was Rina, and with her usual bag of groceries.  
"Ah, Rina," called Ed as he showed her his new silver clock.  
Rina smiled back at him in response.  
"Lieutenant Havoc, please escort Ed out," said Mustang, "He's making quite a racket and I can't concentrate on working with him here."  
"Yes, sir!" saluted Havoc as he shooed Ed out.  
Just as they exited the doors, Ed turned and asked Rina, "Where are going?"  
"I just came from seeing my father, and I thought that I might drop by and see if you were here," said Rina, she smiled.  
"Oh, you wanna come along?" asked Ed, "I'm sure Havoc will give you a ride."  
"Oh, that's nice," smiled Rina, she looked at Havoc, "Would you really?"  
"Of course!" Havoc saluted once again, "I would not refuse the Fuh—"  
"That's great," Rina cut in as she followed Ed, "Let's go."

Later in the car…  
"So where do you want to be dropped off?" asked Ed.  
"Oh, you can just drop me off at the corner over there," said Rina as she pointed to the next block.  
"Sure," said Havoc as he slowed the car down, then stopped, letting Rina get off.  
"Thanks for the ride," said Rina as she walked away and out of sight.  
"It was an honor to drive someone such as yourself miss," Havoc said back.  
After Rina left, Ed decided to ask Havoc a few questions.  
"What was with all the formality?" asked Ed.  
"Miss Rina is the daughter of a very high military man," replied Havoc. "She is very well respected, as is her father."  
"Is that so?" said Ed, not interested anymore.  
"Yes," said Havoc.

When Ed was kicked off the car by Havoc after he insulted the Colonel in front of Havoc, he walked the rest of the way to the library. Though, on his way there, he bumped into Rina again, except this time she was wearing a long black coat over her clothes.  
"Hey! Watch where you're going!" said Ed as he turned to look at the person who walked into him. He stopped and started again, "Rina!"  
"Ed!" cried Rina, "What are you doing here?"  
"What am I doing here?" repeated Ed, "What are you doing here?"  
"I was just going to the library to do some research on something," said Rina.  
"Hey, me too," said Ed, "Why don't we go there together?"  
"Um, Ed…" started Rina.  
"Oh, yeah, I forgot you can't enter that library since you're not a state alchemist," said Ed, "Oh well."  
"Um, Ed…" said Rina.  
"Yeah?" said Ed.  
"You're going the wrong way," said Rina, pointing in the opposite direction Ed was walking in, "The library is this way."  
"Oh, sorry," said Ed as he retraced his steps and walked the other way.  
"Umm… sure…," said Rina, unsure. "Well, I'm gonna go and look in the first sector library. You?"  
"Same here," answered Ed, he stopped, "Hey, how can you enter the first sector library?"  
"Um… going with you?" guessed Rina, making up an excuse.  
"You can't do that," said Ed, he made a face.  
"Okay… so I got special permission to go there," said Rina truthfully.  
"I guess that's all right," said Ed. "So who gave you special permission?"  
"Well, I'm just doing some research job so I got permission to use so books from the first sector library," said Rina.  
"Oh, okay," said Ed, "What kind of research are you doing?"  
"Well, it's a bit of childish whim and all, but I'm researching about the philosopher's stone," Rina answered sheepishly.  
"The philosopher's stone?" repeated Ed, now he was interested in what Rina had to say about that subject, "What have you learned about it?"  
"Not much," answered Rina, she looked straight at the library in the distance. "It's just a myth and all."  
"I also happen to be doing some researching on that subject," confided Ed. "About the philosopher's stone."  
"Well, let me know when you learn something new," said Rina, smiling at Ed.  
"Same goes for you," said Ed.  
The two friends laughed together as they walked down to the street to the library. When the two got into the library, Ed immediately asked for books that were banned by Brigadier Bran Basque.  
Rina on the other hand, went straight to the shelves and took out a small handbook, or journal as you can call it, and started to read it. She flipped through some pages and saw something that grabbed her attention. She immediately took out her own little handbook and started to copy what was in the handbook she was reading. She flipped the page once more and saw that there was nothing else interesting left. She sighed and flipped through it some more before coming across a page with the picture of the human transmutation circle on it. There were little notes made all over the page, finding the faults within the original human transmutation circle, and creating solutions to change the results. Yet there was still something missing, there was nothing written about the compensation for the soul. There was nothing to give in return for a human body complete with a soul of its own, it would only be an empty shell, nothing more, nothing less. As the years go by, it would only rot away and start turning back to what it was before, earth. "From dust to dust, ye who were made from the ground shalt return to whence you came from."  
Rina sighed once more and put the book back in its place on the shelf and turned to find the other book, she found it squeezed between two fat text books and pulled it off the shelf, dusting the dust particles off. She smiled and opened to the bookmarked page, page 14. It was about Human Alchemy and the mythical Philosopher's Stone. She smiled and started to read the much loved story over again. This time however, she made little notes in her handbook and drew out the transmutation circles that were described in the book. When she had finished her drawings, she looked them over and compared them to the ones that were drawn by famous alchemists in the past. She furrowed her brow when it came to the last one, the Human Transmutation Circle. She looked at hers and at the old one, there was one difference, though it was small, she still saw it. The compensation for the soul, the icon for Heaven (God) and Earth, it was all different. While in hers the icon for Heaven (God) and Earth was not two dragons with the five point star, but one dragon in a circle with two stars, one within the other, and two wings, each on one side of the dragon. Rina sighed for the last time before shutting the book and going to look for Ed. She saw him walk out of the library dejectedly and followed him out, saying a good bye to the librarians.  
Rina caught up to Ed and shoved him from behind, "Hey! Wait for me!"  
"Augh! Rina!" cried Ed, "What was that for!"  
"For leaving me behind!" protested Rina.  
"Oh, sorry bout that, I forgot," laughed Ed, apologetically.  
"Ah… fine…" said Rina, "I'll forgive you this time, if you treat me to ice cream!"  
"What!" cried Ed, "That's not fair!"  
"Too bad!"  
As they walked down the steps arguing, they saw the door guard arguing with another man.  
"No, you are not allowed to go in there, you need special permission," argued the guard.  
The man resisted the guard and finally pushed past him, walking hurriedly up the library steps where he was stopped by Ed. He looked down and glared at Ed.  
"Well, you know, it's the rules," said Ed. Rina stood on the side watching the whole thing.

And that is all for this one!


	4. Chapter 4

The Forbidden One  
I'm trying very, very hard to keep this interesting in a way, and to keep all of them in character. So please forgive me if anything is weird, that and I'm going off topic from the story…

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself; he took care of her as if she were his own.

Ayumi: I hate this… Writer's block ish evil!  
Rina: Too bad.  
Ayumi: Shaddup.  
Rina: …  
Ayumi: Good girl.

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 4: Father

_"No, you are not allowed to go in there, you need special permission," argued the guard.  
The man resisted the guard and finally pushed past him, walking hurriedly up the library steps where he was stopped by Ed. He looked down and glared at Ed.  
"Well, you know, it's the rules," said Ed. Rina stood on the side watching the whole thing.  
_

The man ignored Ed and kept walking, pulling along. Unfortunately for him, Ed didn't expect that and his arm was still latched onto the man's sleeve, pulling the sleeve off and showing the man's tattooed arm. The man panicked and ran off from the site, taking his sleeve with him, covering his arm as he ran.  
"What was that all about?" asked Rina to no one in particular.  
"Dunno," said Ed, shrugging.  
"Well, now you owe me some ice cream!" said Rina, changing the subject.  
"No I don't!" protested Ed.  
"Oh come on!" pleaded Rina, about to make puppy dog eyes, "It's just ice cream! You should have some too!"  
"No!" Ed said firmly.  
"Meanie," complained Rina, she sighed, "Okay, fine, I'll treat you then. But you owe me though."  
"Ah… fine," Ed finally agreed.  
The two of them went to an ice cream shop and got ice cream. While they were there, they bumped into Hughes.  
"Oh! Lieutenant Hughes!" called Rina as she waved to the lieutenant. The lieutenant looked up and waved back, he was with his daughter. He brought her over to where Rina and Ed were.  
"My, my, what do we have here?" said Hughes, looking at Rina, then Ed, and back again. "Are you two on a date?"  
Rina laughed and Ed choked on his ice cream.  
"No, we bumped into each other at the library and decided to get some ice cream," Rina laughed as she watched Ed choke and gasp for air.  
"Is that so…?" Hughes said slowly.  
"My, Elysia-chan is looking pretty today," commented Rina, changing the subject.  
"Yes she is! So you noticed!" cried Hughes, "Finally! Someone who notices! I'm so happy!"  
"You don't have to go that far sir," said Rina, while laughing at Hughes' antics.  
"That's right," agreed Ed, "Elysia looks just the same as last time."  
"Well, I'll be going now," said Rina, suddenly getting up, "I have to go home and make dinner. See ya Ed! And good luck! You'll need it!"  
And with just that, Rina left, leaving Ed to a furious Hughes, about to torture with showing more and more pictures of Elysia.  
'She's right,' Ed agreed mentally as he groaned from the pictures shoved in front of his face, 'I need all the luck I need to get out of this…'  
Ed suddenly cut Hughes in the middle of a sentence, "I need to get back or Al will start to worry."  
Ed ran off as well, leaving Hughes with his daughter.  
'That was close,' thought Ed as he walked down the street after running a block away from the ice cream store in case Hughes decided to chase him.  
"Well, seems like you managed to get away," commented a voice from behind. Ed snapped around and found Rina laughing at him.  
"Thanks for ditching me back there with the lieutenant," said Ed, a bit pissed.  
"Like I'd want to stay and suffer with you," said Rina, she laughed some more and started to walk off across the street. Ed followed her, intent on some kind of revenge, in case he ever forget later on.

"What are you doing?" asked Rina after some time, turning to face Ed. "I'm sure Al will start to worry about where you ran off to."  
"Al can wait," said Ed, "Right now I'm in need of some revenge."  
"Okay…" said Rina, an eyebrow going up. "And what are you planning to do?"  
"I'm working on that," answered Ed.  
"Well, in that case, why don't come over to my place?" suggested Rina, "You can have more time to think. You can stay for dinner as well if you like, and call your brother when we get there, I'm sure he's very worried about you right now."  
"Yeah, yeah," said Ed.

When they got to Rina's house (no, not that mansion she lives in with her family, the one she rented close to the military), Rina directed Ed to the phone to call Al. She then got busy and started to cook some pasta for dinner. When Ed was done with the phone call, which consisted of Al and a lot of nagging and Ed protesting as best as he could, he finally went to the kitchen.  
"You staying for dinner?" asked Rina, from the stove.  
"Yeah," said Ed, "Seeing as I haven't gotten revenge yet."  
"Okay," said Rina, turning back to the pot. She added in the pasta when the water boiled and cooked for another ten minutes before ladling out the pasta on two plates and a container and topped it off with meatballs and tomato sauce. She placed a plate in front of Ed and one for herself, the container was wrapped up and placed on the table as well.  
Ed looked at the container and asked, "What's that for?"  
"My father," answered Rina as she ate. "Now eat quickly, I still have to take this over to my father. He's very busy so he doesn't go home much, and when he does, it's always for a short while. Otherwise, he pretty much stays at his office all the time."  
"Your father must be very important," said Ed as he finished his pasta.  
"I guess," sighed Rina, "But he should spend some more time with the family."  
"The family?" repeated Ed, "What about you?"  
"Oh, I see him just about everyday, so it's not such a problem for me, but for my mother and brother… they don't see much of him, it's really sad and unfair that only I get to spend more time with father," said Rina, as she washed the dishes. Ed dried the dishes and put them away on the shelves.  
"Well, it's not your fault," said Ed, not wanting to remember his own father.  
"Well, let's go," said Rina as she took the container and put it into a bag and went out.

Once the two of them were back on military grounds, Rina went straight for the main building. As they passed through the hallways, Ed realized that he had not been to that particular part of the building before. Later on, Rina walked through a set of wooden doors with guards on either sides. Rina bowed to the guards, and they saluted back and let her in. Ed followed her inside. Inside, there was a small room with a woman sitting at the desk and more guards guarding a next set of wooden doors.  
Rina walked right past the woman and to the set of doors. The guards saluted to her and let her in. Ed followed once again, but was stopped by the guards this time.  
"What th--!" Ed protested.  
"You are not allowed in there," said the guards.  
"Oh, don't worry about him," said Rina as she turned around.  
"Miss…?" said the guards, not sure whether they should let Ed in.  
"He's my new bodyguard," Rina made up on the spot. Ed made a face at her, but stopped as she gave him the 'just go along with it' look.  
"You may go in," said the guards as they let Ed follow Rina into the room.

"What was that all about?" asked Ed as the doors closed behind him.  
"Oh, if you're not summoned or trusted, you're not allowed in here," explained Rina calmly.  
"Wow, high security for you father," commented Ed. "Didn't know he was this important."  
"Well, I'm not actually that important, they just think I can't protect myself, so I have to escape from them sometimes," said a voice from the corner, "They are very protestant about me being with a pair of bodyguards all the time, and I find them to be very persistent, I can never seem to get away for long."  
Ed looked over to the corner from which the Fuhrer stepped out from, holding a book in his hand.  
"The Fuhrer!" gasped Ed as he stood at attention and saluted the man before him. He looked over at Rina who was standing calmly and smiling.  
"I brought you dinner father," Rina said as she handed over the bag to the Fuhrer.  
The Fuhrer smiled kindly at Rina, "Thank you sweetie. You think of your old man even while you're busy. I'm sure you'll make your husband very happy in the future."  
"Husband…? Bleach!" said Rina in disgust, "I don't wanna go through all that weird and long legal stuff. It's so annoying and all. I'll never fall in love."  
"I'm sure you'll feel differently someday," laughed the Fuhrer. He then turned to Ed and said, "At ease soldier."  
"Ah, yes sir," replied Ed as he dropped his hand from the salute and loosened up a little. He turned to Rina and mouthed at her, "You didn't tell me your father was the Fuhrer."  
"Well, if I did, that would be a huge laugh for most people," said Rina logically. "Not many outside of the military know I'm the Fuhrer's daughter."  
"But still… How come I didn't know?" asked Ed.  
"You're new here," Rina rolled her eyes in frustration.  
"Who's this young man here Rina?" asked the Fuhrer as he gestured to Ed.  
"Oh, his name's Edward Elric, the Full Metal Alchemist," said Rina.  
"I passed the State Alchemist exam this year," said Ed.  
"Impressive, one such as you who does not need the aid of a transmutation circle must be a real genius," complimented the Fuhrer, "And at your age, you must be considered a real prodigy."  
"Thank you sir," Ed replied.  
"So tell me, what do you think of my daughter?" the Fuhrer sneakily sided up to Ed and asked quietly.  
"Eh?" Ed said, confused at what was going on. "What do you mean?"  
"Well, do you like her, is she pretty, smart or what not?" explained the Fuhrer.  
"Well… I guess you can say she's pretty," said Ed, not sure what to answer. "And she's pretty interesting…"  
"Father are you trying to find more candidates to be my husband?" Rina asked, frustrated with her father.  
"Oh, I just wanted to help, that's all," said the Fuhrer. "Seeing as you don't like any of the ones I've picked so far. And besides, this is the first time you've brought a friend with you, and a smart and handsome young man at that too."  
"All the others were for the power and influence they could get," Rina stated. Rina made a face at Ed, "What do you mean he's handsome, I mean, sure he's cute, but he's short."  
Ed fumed at Rina's comment, but held his anger in check, after all, he didn't want to make a bad impression for the Fuhrer. As soon as he calmed down, he thought, 'Wait, did she just say I'm cute…?'  
"Well, I'm trying to help," said the Fuhrer as he sighed in defeat, for the moment.  
"And I really doubt Ed would be interested in me," said Rina, pointing towards where Ed was standing stock still like a tree, "He's a good friend and all, but as a husband? I don't think so."  
"And why's that?" asked the Fuhrer, "I personally think he has a good chance."  
"Too short," Rina answered bluntly.  
"What was that about me being super-extra-hyper small that you can't tell from a grain of sand?!" cried Ed furiously, not being able to contain his anger anymore.  
"And he has a temper," Rina added as she smiled evilly at the fuming Ed.  
"Well, no one's perfect Rina," sighed the Fuhrer at his picky daughter. "Be glad with what you can get."  
"Well, I'll be leaving now," said Rina as she left the room. Ed quickly returned to normal, saluted the Fuhrer and followed Rina, but as he was about to exit, the Fuhrer stopped him.

And this will be it for now…


	5. Chapter 5

The Forbidden One  
I'm trying very, very hard to keep this interesting in a way, and to keep all of them in character. So please forgive me if anything is weird, that and I'm going off topic from the story… And the Fuhrer is trying to marry Rina off!

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself; he took care of her as if she were his own.

Ayumi: I hate this… Writer's block ish evil!  
Rina: Too bad.  
Ayumi: Shaddup.  
Rina: …  
Ayumi: Good girl.

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 5: Height

_"Well, no one's perfect Rina," sighed the Fuhrer at his picky daughter. "Be glad with what you can get."  
"Well, I'll be leaving now," said Rina as she left the room. Ed quickly returned to normal, saluted the Fuhrer and followed Rina, but as he was about to exit, the Fuhrer stopped him._

"Wait a minute Full Metal One," said the Fuhrer, his hand held out in front of him, gesturing for Ed to wait, "I would like to speak to you."  
"Yes sir?" said Ed as he stopped and turned around, facing the Fuhrer at attention.  
"Well, I was wondering if you could take care of my daughter for me," said the Fuhrer, a bit slyly, "She does do a lot of traveling, and alone too. I would like for her to have some kind of protection, and I heard that you also do some traveling of your own."  
"Well, I may be able to do that only from time to time sir," said Ed in an apathetic tone, "I do have my own research to do."  
"Yes, that's true," said the Fuhrer, nodding his head in agreement, "But please do your best then whenever you can protect her."  
"Yes sir," said Ed as he saluted and started to walk out.  
"I can give her hand in marriage to you so you can protect her for me all the time," said the Fuhrer, calling towards Ed's retreating back, "I can have her follow you wherever you go."  
Ed stopped in his tracks, and thought while blushing a bit at the prospect of marriage, and at his age, but shrugged it off, 'So that's what he was getting at.'  
He turned around and replied in the same tone as before, "I'll have to get back to you on that last part."  
And with that, Ed left the room, to a waiting Rina. An impatient and waiting Rina, tapping her foot and arms crossed, as if Ed had just done something naughty.  
"So what did he talk to you about?" asked Rina, knowingly.  
"To protect you when you travel," answered Ed evasively.  
"And what did you say?" asked Rina in a warning tone, wanting an answer, the right answer she wanted to hear.  
"I'll only protect you when I have time," Ed answered truthfully.  
"And what did you answer to the last part?" asked Rina, interrogating Ed in detail.  
"I'll get back to him about that last part," said Ed, as he walked past Rina, wanting to get away from the interrogation. "It's getting late, so I have to get back before Al freaks."  
"I'm sure you're gonna freak him out just by returning at one in the morning," Rina pointed at the clock.  
"Oh," mouthed Ed in surprise, he had no idea it was this late already. "So what should do?"  
"Well, where are you staying?" asked Rina.  
"With Lieutenant Hughes at the moment," answered Ed.  
"Okay, so you wouldn't want to go there this late," said Rina, thinking of a solution.  
"Well, I can always find some hotel to stay at," said Ed as he shrugged, making it seem like it was something normal to do.  
"No, I can find somewhere for you to stay," said Rina, smiling as she found an answer to the problem.  
"Where?" asked Ed, then he scrunched up his face. "Not your place right?"  
"Of course not!" said Rina, acting offended by Ed's suggestion, "I'd just kick you out."  
"So where?" asked Ed, confused.  
"Here," answered Rina, smiling and pointing at one of the dorm buildings on the military grounds.  
"Here?" repeated Ed.  
"Yes, here," clarified Rina, "As in the dorms. I can find an empty one for you, and some extra clothes lying around for you to change into."  
"Sounds good," said Ed as he shrugged in agreement, not caring where he stayed as long as he had a place to stay for the night.  
"This way," said Rina as she led the way to another building a bit off to the side from the others. Rina walked down the hallway and stopped at one room and opened the door with the key. "Here."  
The two of them stepped into the room, it was a bit big, unlike the other dorms rooms Ed had seen before.  
"Wow, it's nice in here," commented Ed.  
"It is," agreed Rina, she went around. "There's the bathroom, and the towels are in there. I'll go get some spare clothes for you."  
"Okay," said Ed as he headed into the bathroom to take a relaxing shower.

A few minutes later Rina returned with spare clothes. She knocked on the door of the bathroom.  
"Yeah?" Ed called from inside the shower.  
"I'll hand you the clothes, so just open the door and tell me when you're done showering," said Rina as she waited with the clothes in her hands.  
"Okay," Ed called back as he continued showering for another few minutes.

"Okay, Rina, hand them in," called Ed as he opened the door a bit.  
Rina handed all the clothes in to him. "And give me your other clothes, I'll get them washed for you."  
"Sure," said Ed as he handed them over to Rina.  
Rina left the room once again and returned twenty minutes later, with the clothes, all dry and folded neatly.  
"Here," said Rina as she handed the clothes over to Ed.  
"Thanks a lot Rina," said Ed as he thanked Rina gratefully. He looked at his clothes, "How did you manage to do that so fast?"  
"I had some help from people," answered Rina, she shrugged.  
"Who would help at this time of the night," Ed asked no one in particular.  
"Oh, I had the Flame Alchemist dry it after I washed it," said Rina, "He was still doing work so I just asked."  
"Then it's a miracle my clothes are not burnt to a crisp," sighed Ed as he looked at his clothes.  
"Well, I told him that I just forgot to do some laundry, and he didn't care so he just dried it," said Rina.  
"Well, I guess that can do," laughed Ed.  
There was silence between them, it was a bit uncomfortable, especially since it was really late, and they were alone together in a room. Ed just looked down at the floor, somehow finding it very interesting at the moment. He only stopped staring intently at it when he felt a pair of eyes boring into him, he looked up to see Rina staring at him, actually, it looked more like she was checking him out.  
"What?" asked Ed, breaking the silence.  
"When's the last time you grew?" asked Rina, still eyeing him.  
"What's that matter to you?" asked Ed, Rina had hit a nerve.  
"I can tell you how you can grow," said Rina as she looked Ed in the eye.  
"If it has nothing to do with milk then I'm fine with it," said Ed.  
"Well, sure," said Rina, she smiled, "There are other ways to get calcium, or to just grow."  
"What is it?" asked Ed.  
"Well, were your parents tall?" asked Rina.  
"I guess mom was pretty average, but my father I think that bastard was pretty tall," answered Ed, with spite in his voice when he mentioned 'that bastard'.  
"Do you exercise regularly?" asked Rina, going on with another interrogation.  
"What's with the interrogation?" asked Ed, looking at her, "How does that help me getting taller?"  
"Well, if you answer and I use the information and plug it into some equations and figure out the math, then it might help," said Rina, explaining what she was doing.  
"Oh, yeah, my teacher had me and Al train and exercise a lot, so it's pretty much second nature for us to exercise now," answered Ed.

"Well, it seems that it's either you had received some recessive gene that makes you short, or you carry around too much weight and stress and didn't get enough calcium," said Rina, "Those are the reasons you are short, well maybe."

"And what do I have to do to get taller?" asked Ed.  
"Well, get more calcium?" guessed Rina. She sighed and got up, thinking of a solution, "I know! Wait here!"  
With that, Rina rushed off out of the room. It was some time later that she came back, and with an entire pot of rich and nice smelling stew. Ed smelt it and memories flooded back into his head, back when his mother was still alive and made the same kind of god smelling stew just for him.  
"Ed?" said Rina as she held a bowl in front of him.  
Ed came out of his past and shook his head a bit to clear up a bit, "Eh, what is it?"  
"Here, try some of this," said Rina as she pushed the bowl into Ed's hands. "See if you like it."  
Ed stared down at the stew, and reluctantly tried some. I mean, after all, Rina was only trying to help, he should at least try the stew. He took a bit, tasted and swallowed, stopped, and then took another bite, then another and another. He loved it. "It's really good, it's just like how my mother used to make it."  
"Um, thanks," said Rina, not knowing what to say. "I thought you might not like it because there's milk in it, and I tried to think of a way to make the taste disappear in the stew."  
"Well, I can't taste any of the milk," commented Ed as he ate.  
"Well, I guess I can make some for you everyday to eat," said Rina, "And see if you grow at all."  
"I think I can handle making it myself," said Ed, looking up from the now empty bowl. "I wouldn't want to bother you."  
"It's no problem," said Rina, she laughed, "I have so much spare time on my hands."  
"Don't you have to study?" asked Ed, he made a face.  
"No, I have enough time to do the researching," laughed Rina, "In fact, I have too much time to do that."  
"Why can't you just give me the recipe then?" asked Ed, "I can make the stew myself."  
"It's a secret recipe," said Rina, she smiled mysteriously, "I can't just give out my secrets to just anyone."  
"Oh come on," said Ed, he was complaining.  
"I'll just make the stew for you, and besides, you'll probably have to try a few times before you get it even a bit edible," said Rina, "I had to do that before."  
"I'm a fast learner," Ed tried to change Rina's mind.  
"No," Rina stood firm on her grounds.  
"Oh fine," sighed Ed, giving up. "You can make the stew."  
"Great!" Rina said happily, "It'll give me something to do when I'm bored."  
"So all I have to do is to wait…" sighed Ed, "I'm not that patient."  
"Well, there is another way," Rina said quietly, facing the floor.  
"What is it?" Ed asked sharply, his attention on Rina.  
"But it's very painful to go through," said Rina.  
"I can take it," reassured Ed, smiling brightly.  
"Yeah, you might," agreed Rina, but added in an after thought, "But you might not."  
"Why not?" asked Ed, confused and a bit pissed at Rina for suggesting that he is weak.  
"Well, it just is," said Rina, she sighed and looked him directly in the eye, "You sure you want to try that method? It may be much faster, and make you much taller, but it's really painful."

And what exactly is the other method to make Ed taller? And yes the plot of this story will be taking a huge turn from the original series' storyline. That and Ed's gonna be tall!


	6. Chapter 6

The Forbidden One  
I'm trying very, very hard to keep this interesting in a way, and to keep all of them in character. So please forgive me if anything is weird, that and I'm going off topic from the story…Whooo!!! I'm gonna go totally off from what the storyline is supposed to be and add in my own touch of writing, along with the fact that Ed will no longer be short (or as short), so not as much height jokes will be seen in here.

Summary: The news of the birth of a child in Central fifteen years ago, who carried great powers of the taboo arts, was silenced by the orders of King Bradley Fuhrer himself. The child's parents were never found, and she was taken in by the head of the military himself; he took care of her as if she were his own.

Ayumi: I just recovered and now I'm down for the count again…  
Rina: Too bad.  
Ayumi: What is the meaning of life?  
Rina: You tell me.  
Ayumi: Why do you think I asked in the first place?

The Forbidden One  
Chapter 6: Growth

"_Well, there is another way," Rina said quietly, facing the floor.  
"What is it?" Ed asked sharply, his attention on Rina.  
"But it's very painful to go through," said Rina.  
"I can take it," reassured Ed, smiling brightly.  
"Yeah, you might," agreed Rina, but added in an after thought, "But you might not."  
"Why not?" asked Ed, confused and a bit pissed at Rina for suggesting that he is weak.  
"Well, it just is," said Rina, she sighed and looked him directly in the eye, "You sure you want to try that method? It may be much faster, and make you much taller, but it's really painful."  
_

"Like I said, I can take it," reassured Ed, still smiling.  
"Okay then," said Rina as she stood up, she turned to Ed, "Just wait a bit."  
Rina took out a piece of chalk she had with her and started to draw a simple, yet complex circle in the middle of the floor. Ed just watched in amazement. When Rina was done with the circle, she motioned towards Ed, "Come stand here in the centre of the circle."  
Ed did as he was told and stood there in the centre. Rina smiled and continued to instruct him, "Okay, now clap your hands together to create your own circle."  
Once again, Ed did as he was told to, but he was confused, what was the circle on the floor for then?  
"Okay, now my turn," said Rina as she finished drawing some transmutation circles on the palms of her hands. She walked into the circle where Ed was standing and stood in front of him, "Okay, now to begin. Ed, you need to keep your hands together until the transmutation circle on the floor has started. Can you do that?"  
"Yeah, simple task," said Ed, nodding.  
"Just don't be surprised at what comes next, it' just because you have auto mail that I have to change the sequence a bit," explained Rina.  
"Okay," said Ed, still nodding, amazed that Rina was able to change the entire structure of her transmutation theory as she went along.  
What came next really did surprise him, Rina had ducked under his arms and was now in between his hands and chest. She placed her forehead against his chest and her palms flat on his back, suddenly, he felt a kind of charge pulse through his body, warming him up. Rina then let go, and ducked back out of the circle, and activated the circle on the floor.  
"You can take your hands apart now!" Rina called to Ed as a gust of wind and blue electricity crackled about Ed.  
Ed did as he was told, and as soon as he took his hands apart, the warm feeling in his body was gone and was replaced with a coldness that bit at him, hurting like hell. And as soon as the feeling came, it was gone, along with the wind and blue electricity.  
"How do you feel?" Rina asked as she pulled Ed up from the floor and half carried him to the couch where he fell right onto, panting.  
"Man, that hurt like hell," said Ed, still panting, and winced in pain, "And I feel sore all over."  
"Well, the soreness will disappear with some good rest," said Rina, she looked at Ed's auto mail, "but for now, I think you should consider getting new auto mail to suit your new body."  
Ed looked down at himself and saw that Rina was right, his auto mail had shrunk, or in this case, he had grown. He looked back up at Rina and smiled a triumphant smile, "Well, your trick did it."  
"Just like it should," said Rina, "Except, it can't change anything but the human composition, that's the reason you fell sore. I just took all the excess nutrients you had and the ones you haven't used yet to make you taller, and you seem to have an excess of calcium, enough to make you grow a foot."  
"Well, I guess I'm not the real genius here," laughed Ed.  
"Well, that's what comes from hard work, good resources and lots of time," shrugged Rina. She looked Ed over again, "And you'll be needing larger clothes. I think I can adjust the ones I cleaned and find some more suitable spare clothes for you to wear now."  
"Okay," said Ed as he went back to eating the stew while Rina left the room with the clothes. It was just after Rina left that he noticed a little black handbook lying beside him on the couch. He picked it up and opened it to the first page and read it. "This book belongs to Rina Bradley."  
Ed smiled and flipped to the next page, curious to see what was in the book. He was amazed by all the research notes, experiments, equations, and theories all written in the little book, there were even things that weren't related to the rest in there as well.  
The door opened and Ed quickly closed the book and placed it on the bureau next to him. Rina came in with the clothes again, handing the spare to him and putting his other clothes on the desk. Ed got up to go change in the bathroom, but handed the black book back to Rina before he went. "Here, I think you dropped this."  
Rina gasped when she saw her book, she hadn't noticed she'd dropped it. "Oh, thanks Ed. Did you read anything in it?"  
"Well, I had to if I wanted to find who the owner is," shrugged Ed as he headed into the bathroom. When he came back out he saw Rina looking through the book.  
"Think that I might've learned some secret of yours from that?" joked Ed.  
"Well, there isn't really anything that important in here to learn or take away," sighed Rina as she took out a picture, "Except this, it's my treasure."  
Rina handed the picture over to let Ed see. Ed stared hard at the picture, he couldn't believe his eyes, but there it was in front of him.  
"Is that you?" Ed asked pointing to the picture of a chestnut colour haired little girl.  
"Yeah," answered Rina, she looked over at him, "How can you guess that's me? Usually everyone asks if the other girl is me."  
"Well, that other girl in the picture is a friend of mine," said Ed, still looking at the picture, "She's like an older sister to me and Al."  
"You know her?" asked Rina, her eyes were beaming. "You know Winry Rockbell?"  
"Yeah, the three of us grew up together," said Ed, he looked at Rina as if she was acting weird, and truth to be told, she was, a bit.  
"Oh my gosh!" gasped Rina, beaming happily, "So you're from Rezembol too?"  
"Um, yeah, that's right," answered Ed. "How do you know Winry?"  
"We were friends for a while, but then I moved back here to Central," answered Rina, sighing.  
"Oh," said Ed, leaning back into the couch, not very interested anymore.  
"Well, I guess I should get going too," said Rina as she got off the couch, "I need to get home before it's morning."  
"Yeah, see ya," Ed waved to her as she left the room.

As Rina ran down the hallway, she stopped at a door, unlocked it and went in. As she closed the door behind her she sighed, letting her breath out.  
"Well, I guess I'll have to stay in my room here tonight," she said quietly as she headed over to the bed and fell toppled onto the feathery mattress. The instant she hit the bed, she was asleep, off into her world of dreams.

Three years later…

"My, this place seems lively here today," commented Rose from the back of the crowd. The crowd thinned and turned to see the dark haired girl standing there, holding a bag of groceries.  
"Ah! Rose! Shopping for sacrifices?" asked the storekeeper.  
"Ah, yes," smiled Rose. Another girl appeared behind Rose, also holding a bag of groceries.  
"Ah, and Rina-chan is with you too?" said the storekeeper.  
"Good afternoon sir," Rina smiled happily.  
"Ah, such good girls you two are," said another man in the crowd, "God will surely reward you for all you good deeds."  
"I just hope that Rose's prayers will be answered," Rina said, smiling, "I really want to help her all I can."  
"Ah… Rina-chan is just too sweet and caring," gushed the man who commented before.  
"Isn't she?" agreed another man. "She helps everyone out of the goodness of her heart."  
"Yes, such a good and obedient child should be greatly awarded," agreed another man.  
"Rina-chan is just the perfect example for all our children," sighed another man.  
"Rina-chan?" Ed repeated. "Who's she?"  
"She's such a sweet girl, she's polite, helps others and doesn't want anything in return," said the shopkeeper, "She's what every parent hopes their child to be like. She's a perfect little angel."  
"Perfect my ass," Ed mumbled, "Everyone has some kind of evil in them."  
"Shall we go now Rina?" Rose asked Rina.  
"Ah, yes," Rina answered. She then looked at Ed and Al's backs and said, "I've never those two around before. Are they visitors to Lior?"  
"Oh, these two?" said the shopkeeper, "Yes, they are."  
"Do they need a place to stay? Rose and I can take them to the church and ask for a room for them to stay in," Rina said, smiling.  
"Ah, yes," said the shopkeeper. He turned to look at the two brothers, "Rina-chan's offering to take you to a place to stay for the time being. You either take it or leave it."  
"At a church eh?" Ed said thoughtfully.  
"Brother, I think we should find some other place to…" Al was cut off by Ed.  
"No, we'll take the offer," Ed said, turning around in his seat to look at Rina.  
"Well, then, let's go shall we?" said Rina, waiting for Ed and Al.  
Ed just sat there, staring at Rina, he knew her. She was that girl he first met in Central three years ago, but she'd disappeared right after that night she'd help him with his height problem.  
"Brother?" Al asked, already getting up and walked up to Rina. "Brother, let's go."  
Ed came out of his daze and glared at Rina. He opened his mouth and asked a bit harshly, "Is your name Rina Bradley… from Central?"  
"Ah… yes, that's right," Rina answered, surprised, and a bit scared at Ed's tone of voice.  
"So this is where…" Ed mumbled silently under his breath.  
"How dare you use that tone against Rina-chan!" cried the storekeeper, "She hasn't done anything to you."  
Ed ignored the shopkeeper's comment and strode towards Rina, grabbing her wrist quite roughly. She dropped the bag of groceries, her face contorted in show of pain.  
"Ow!" she cried out, as Ed roughly pulled her on her arm, making her stumble towards him.  
"Rina-chan!" gasped Rose, as she saw Ed grab Rina roughly.  
"Brother! What are you doing?" Al asked, trying to stop Ed.  
"How dare you hurt Rina-chan!" cried some of the men around. Some surrounded him, looking very murderous.  
"No, please don't fight," Rina begged the men. They looked confused and very reluctant as they backed up. Rina faced Ed and said, "Please, your hurting my wrist."  
Ed just glared at her, and finally let go of her wrist, tossing her to the ground in a heap at his feet.  
"Brother! Why are you being so mean?" Al asked as he went to help Rina up.  
"Get away from her Al," Ed said icily, looking down at Rina. Al instantly obeyed his brother, but stayed close to Rina, incase his brother tried to hurt her. The men went over to help Rina up, but she pushed them away, saying that she was fine. The men backed away from her as soon as she was standing up again. She looked at Ed with hurt and confusion.  
"Why are you being so mean to me?" she asked, confused and hurt. What could she have possibly done for him to hate her so much?

This is it for this chappie now!


End file.
